Bar Guide 2014: Higgins

Greg Higgins deserves his propers. He was perhaps the first restaurateur in town to understand beer—whether local or Old World—as a gastronomical category every bit as deserving as wine. A Hair of the Dog Adam No. 1 (yes, sir!) sits on the menu for $75, while your everyday Adam comes out of the tap for under $5. And while Higgins restaurant racks up expense accounts, the bar section serves up more economical bistro fare (well, OK, $14 burgers) that you’ll enjoy in the company of attorneys for the U.S. government, commiserating Oregonian employees and the odd couple enjoying proximity to yesteryear’s luxuries. And should you like to impress somebody or another with a $325 bottle of 2001 Chimay Grande Réserve, Higgins is your huckleberry. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.